The operator of a Sendzimir mill, which is used for cold rolling wide sheets of metal to close tolerances, is saving €38,400 (£30,300) by utilising high-reliability, long-life EP steel from NSK to solve the issue of inner ring wear on mill bearings.

The bearing failures at the mill were costing the operator €61,800 annually: €42,000 for the cost of new bearings; €1,000 per hour for the cost of six three-hour maintenance stops per year; and €1,800 for associated costs.

Following a review, NSK’s engineers suggested assembling new bearings for the mill, with the bearing inner rings manufactured from the company’s EP steel.

Key benefits of product application

EP steel is said to offer up to three times the life of conventional bearing materials

NSK said it offers improvements in purity and reduction of non-metallic inclusions relative to conventional bearing steels

NSK

NSK, a global leader in motion and control products, has developed and continuously upgrades four core technologies: tribology, material engineering, analysis technology and mechatronics, to provide the platform for the company’s innovative product developments. This technology platform provides the basis for the design of NSK’s rolling bearings, automotive components and precision parts. In addition, by integrating these advanced technologies, NSK is able to respond quickly and effectively to customer requirements across all key sectors.

NSK is a driver of new technology developments, with a full line-up of products spanning general industrial, automotive and precision parts industries. These include bearings for mechanical and electrical machinery, IT and aftermarket; innovative automotive products such as electric power steering (EPS) automatic transmission components, steering columns and other steering related products; and precision linear motion components such as linear guides, ballscrews, X-Y tables, mechatronic products and Megatorque motors.